1999–2000 Boston Bruins season

1999–2000 Boston Bruins
Division5th Northeast
Conference12th Eastern
1999–2000 record24–33–19–6
Home record12–17–11–1
Road record12–16–8–5
Goals for210
Goals against248
Team information
General managerHarry Sinden
CoachPat Burns
CaptainRay Bourque (Oct.–Mar.)
Vacant (Mar.–Apr.)
ArenaFleet Center
Average attendance16,322
Minor league affiliate(s)Providence Bruins (AHL)
Team leaders
GoalsJoe Thornton (23)
AssistsJoe Thornton (37)
PointsJoe Thornton (60)
Penalty minutesJoe Thornton (82)
Plus/minusAnson Carter (+8)
WinsByron Dafoe (13)
Goals against averageJohn Grahame (2.46)

The 1999–2000 Boston Bruins season was the team's 76th season of operation. The Bruins failed to qualify for the 2000 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Off-season

Following a second-round loss to the Buffalo Sabres the year previous, the Bruins headed into the 1999–2000 season with confidence that they could reach the playoffs for the third straight year under head coach Pat Burns. General manager Harry Sinden signed no free agents in the offseason and made no significant moves heading into the season. Goaltender Byron Dafoe was to be the starter for the third straight year following his best season in 1998–99, going 32–23–11 with a .926 save percentage.

Regular season

On February 21, 2000, Marty McSorley, playing for the Bruins, swung his stick and hit Donald Brashear in the head with seconds left in the Bruins-Vancouver Canucks game. Brashear lost consciousness and suffered a grade 3 concussion, but not from immediate contact with the stick. The stick hit Brashear's helmet, but caused him to fall backward, and his head hit hard on the ice.

As a result of the stick incident, McSorley was charged with assault and suspended by the NHL for the remainder of the 1999–2000 season (including playoffs) missing 23 games. On October 4, 2000, a jury found McSorley guilty of assault with a weapon for his attack on Brashear. He was sentenced to 18 months probation. The trial was the first for an on-ice attack by an NHL player since 1988. After his assault conviction, his NHL suspension was extended to one full year (through February 21, 2001).[1] This suspension was the longest in NHL history and afterwards McSorley never played in another NHL game.

During the regular season, the Bruins were the only team not to score a short-handed goal.[2]

Final standings

Northeast Division[3]
No. CR GP W L T OTL GF GA Pts
1 3 Toronto Maple Leafs 82 45 27 7 3 246 222 100
2 6 Ottawa Senators 82 41 28 11 2 244 210 95
3 8 Buffalo Sabres 82 35 32 11 4 213 204 85
4 10 Montreal Canadiens 82 35 34 9 4 196 194 83
5 11 Boston Bruins 82 24 33 19 6 210 248 73

Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
         Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

Eastern Conference[4]
R Div GP W L T OTL GF GA Pts
1 z – Philadelphia Flyers AT 82 45 22 12 3 237 179 105
2 y – Washington Capitals SE 82 44 24 12 2 227 194 102
3 y – Toronto Maple Leafs NE 82 45 27 7 3 246 222 100
4 New Jersey Devils AT 82 45 24 8 5 251 203 103
5 Florida Panthers SE 82 43 27 6 6 244 209 98
6 Ottawa Senators NE 82 41 28 11 2 244 210 95
7 Pittsburgh Penguins AT 82 37 31 8 6 241 236 88
8 Buffalo Sabres NE 82 35 32 11 4 213 204 85
8.5
9 Carolina Hurricanes SE 82 37 35 10 0 217 216 84
10 Montreal Canadiens NE 82 35 34 9 4 196 194 83
11 New York Rangers AT 82 29 38 12 3 218 246 73
12 Boston Bruins NE 82 24 33 19 6 210 248 73
13 New York Islanders AT 82 24 48 9 1 194 275 58
14 Tampa Bay Lightning SE 82 19 47 9 7 204 310 54
15 Atlanta Thrashers SE 82 14 57 7 4 170 313 39

Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs; z – Won conference; y – Won division


Schedule and results

1999–2000 regular season[5]
October: 4–5–4–0 (home: 2–1–2–0; road: 2–4–2–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
1 L October 2, 1999 1–3 Carolina Hurricanes (1999–2000) 0–1–0–0 Recap
2 L October 4, 1999 0–4 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1999–2000) 0–2–0–0 Recap
3 L October 7, 1999 3–4 @ Ottawa Senators (1999–2000) 0–3–0–0 Recap
4 T October 9, 1999 1–1 OT Philadelphia Flyers (1999–2000) 0–3–1–0 Recap
5 T October 11, 1999 3–3 OT Colorado Avalanche (1999–2000) 0–3–2–0 Recap
6 L October 13, 1999 1–2 @ Colorado Avalanche (1999–2000) 0–4–2–0 Recap
7 T October 15, 1999 2–2 OT @ Dallas Stars (1999–2000) 0–4–3–0 Recap
8 L October 16, 1999 1–2 @ Phoenix Coyotes (1999–2000) 0–5–3–0 Recap
9 T October 20, 1999 2–2 OT @ Los Angeles Kings (1999–2000) 0–5–4–0 Recap
10 W October 23, 1999 3–1 @ San Jose Sharks (1999–2000) 1–5–4–0 Recap
11 W October 24, 1999 3–2 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1999–2000) 2–5–4–0 Recap
12 W October 28, 1999 7–3 Tampa Bay Lightning (1999–2000) 3–5–4–0 Recap
13 W October 30, 1999 3–0 Buffalo Sabres (1999–2000) 4–5–4–0 Recap
November: 7–3–2–0 (home: 4–2–1–0; road: 3–1–1–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
14 W November 4, 1999 3–1 New Jersey Devils (1999–2000) 5–5–4–0 Recap
15 W November 6, 1999 4–2 Atlanta Thrashers (1999–2000) 6–5–4–0 Recap
16 L November 10, 1999 2–6 @ Buffalo Sabres (1999–2000) 6–6–4–0 Recap
17 W November 11, 1999 4–3 OT Toronto Maple Leafs (1999–2000) 7–6–4–0 Recap
18 W November 13, 1999 5–2 @ New York Rangers (1999–2000) 8–6–4–0 Recap
19 T November 17, 1999 2–2 OT @ New Jersey Devils (1999–2000) 8–6–5–0 Recap
20 W November 18, 1999 5–3 New York Rangers (1999–2000) 9–6–5–0 Recap
21 L November 20, 1999 0–3 Washington Capitals (1999–2000) 9–7–5–0 Recap
22 W November 22, 1999 2–1 @ Carolina Hurricanes (1999–2000) 10–7–5–0 Recap
23 W November 24, 1999 5–2 @ Nashville Predators (1999–2000) 11–7–5–0 Recap
24 T November 26, 1999 2–2 OT Vancouver Canucks (1999–2000) 11–7–6–0 Recap
25 L November 28, 1999 1–2 New York Islanders (1999–2000) 11–8–6–0 Recap
December: 2–6–3–2 (home: 1–3–2–0; road: 1–3–1–2)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
26 T December 2, 1999 2–2 OT @ Washington Capitals (1999–2000) 11–8–7–0 Recap
27 L December 4, 1999 3–9 Chicago Blackhawks (1999–2000) 11–9–7–0 Recap
28 T December 9, 1999 2–2 OT Edmonton Oilers (1999–2000) 11–9–8–0 Recap
29 L December 11, 1999 4–5 Detroit Red Wings (1999–2000) 11–10–8–0 Recap
30 W December 13, 1999 2–0 Phoenix Coyotes (1999–2000) 12–10–8–0 Recap
31 L December 14, 1999 2–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1999–2000) 12–11–8–0 Recap
32 W December 17, 1999 3–1 @ Atlanta Thrashers (1999–2000) 13–11–8–0 Recap
33 L December 18, 1999 0–4 @ St. Louis Blues (1999–2000) 13–12–8–0 Recap
34 L December 21, 1999 1–3 Nashville Predators (1999–2000) 13–13–8–0 Recap
35 T December 23, 1999 3–3 OT Montreal Canadiens (1999–2000) 13–13–9–0 Recap
36 L December 27, 1999 0–3 @ New York Islanders (1999–2000) 13–14–9–0 Recap
37 OTL December 29, 1999 4–5 OT @ New Jersey Devils (1999–2000) 13–14–9–1 Recap
38 OTL December 30, 1999 4–5 OT @ Ottawa Senators (1999–2000) 13–14–9–2 Recap
January: 4–4–4–2 (home: 1–4–3–1; road: 3–0–1–1)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
39 T January 1, 2000 2–2 OT New Jersey Devils (1999–2000) 13–14–10–2 Recap
40 W January 4, 2000 7–3 @ New York Islanders (1999–2000) 14–14–10–2 Recap
41 L January 6, 2000 3–7 Carolina Hurricanes (1999–2000) 14–15–10–2 Recap
42 L January 8, 2000 2–5 New York Islanders (1999–2000) 14–16–10–2 Recap
43 L January 11, 2000 2–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1999–2000) 14–17–10–2 Recap
44 T January 13, 2000 0–0 OT Buffalo Sabres (1999–2000) 14–17–11–2 Recap
45 T January 15, 2000 2–2 OT @ Montreal Canadiens (1999–2000) 14–17–12–2 Recap
46 T January 17, 2000 3–3 OT Atlanta Thrashers (1999–2000) 14–17–13–2 Recap
47 W January 19, 2000 4–3 @ Atlanta Thrashers (1999–2000) 15–17–13–2 Recap
48 W January 20, 2000 4–2 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1999–2000) 16–17–13–2 Recap
49 OTL January 22, 2000 3–4 OT @ Florida Panthers (1999–2000) 16–17–13–3 Recap
50 OTL January 24, 2000 3–4 OT Calgary Flames (1999–2000) 16–17–13–4 Recap
51 W January 29, 2000 1–0 Buffalo Sabres (1999–2000) 17–17–13–4 Recap
52 L January 31, 2000 2–4 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1999–2000) 17–18–13–4 Recap
February: 2–5–4–0 (home: 1–2–1–0; road: 1–3–3–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
53 T February 1, 2000 4–4 OT @ Ottawa Senators (1999–2000) 17–18–14–4 Recap
54 W February 3, 2000 4–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (1999–2000) 18–18–14–4 Recap
55 T February 8, 2000 2–2 OT Washington Capitals (1999–2000) 18–18–15–4 Recap
56 L February 11, 2000 2–5 @ New York Rangers (1999–2000) 18–19–15–4 Recap
57 L February 12, 2000 1–5 Florida Panthers (1999–2000) 18–20–15–4 Recap
58 T February 16, 2000 3–3 OT @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1999–2000) 18–20–16–4 Recap
59 L February 21, 2000 2–5 @ Vancouver Canucks (1999–2000) 18–21–16–4 Recap
60 L February 23, 2000 2–4 @ Edmonton Oilers (1999–2000) 18–22–16–4 Recap
61 W February 25, 2000 3–0 @ Washington Capitals (1999–2000) 19–22–16–4 Recap
62 T February 26, 2000 2–2 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1999–2000) 19–22–17–4 Recap
63 L February 29, 2000 3–5 Ottawa Senators (1999–2000) 19–23–17–4 Recap
March: 4–7–1–2 (home: 2–5–1–0; road: 2–2–0–2)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
64 L March 2, 2000 2–5 Montreal Canadiens (1999–2000) 19–24–17–4 Recap
65 L March 4, 2000 0–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1999–2000) 19–25–17–4 Recap
66 L March 6, 2000 1–5 Ottawa Senators (1999–2000) 19–26–17–4 Recap
67 OTL March 8, 2000 1–2 OT @ Buffalo Sabres (1999–2000) 19–26–17–5 Recap
68 W March 10, 2000 5–3 @ Carolina Hurricanes (1999–2000) 20–26–17–5 Recap
69 W March 11, 2000 5–3 @ Montreal Canadiens (1999–2000) 21–26–17–5 Recap
70 OTL March 16, 2000 4–5 OT @ Chicago Blackhawks (1999–2000) 21–26–17–6 Recap
71 W March 18, 2000 3–2 Pittsburgh Penguins (1999–2000) 22–26–17–6 Recap
72 L March 19, 2000 2–6 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1999–2000) 22–27–17–6 Recap
73 W March 21, 2000 4–0 Tampa Bay Lightning (1999–2000) 23–27–17–6 Recap
74 L March 23, 2000 1–3 Florida Panthers (1999–2000) 23–28–17–6 Recap
75 T March 25, 2000 4–4 OT Los Angeles Kings (1999–2000) 23–28–18–6 Recap
76 L March 29, 2000 3–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1999–2000) 23–29–18–6 Recap
77 L March 30, 2000 2–3 St. Louis Blues (1999–2000) 23–30–18–6 Recap
April: 1–3–1–0 (home: 1–0–1–0; road: 0–3–0–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
78 T April 1, 2000 2–2 OT New York Rangers (1999–2000) 23–30–19–6 Recap
79 L April 4, 2000 4–5 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1999–2000) 23–31–19–6 Recap
80 L April 5, 2000 3–6 @ Florida Panthers (1999–2000) 23–32–19–6 Recap
81 L April 8, 2000 0–3 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1999–2000) 23–33–19–6 Recap
82 W April 9, 2000 3–1 Pittsburgh Penguins (1999–2000) 24–33–19–6 Recap
Legend:

  Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)   Overtime loss (1 point)

Player statistics

Scoring

  • Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
  • † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
  • ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
No. Player Pos Regular season
GP G A Pts +/- PIM
6 Joe Thornton C 81 23 37 60 −5 82
33 Anson Carter RW 59 22 25 47 8 14
14 Sergei Samsonov LW 77 19 26 45 −6 4
77 Ray Bourque‡ D 65 10 28 38 −11 20
38 Dave Andreychuk‡ LW 63 19 14 33 −11 28
41 Jason Allison C 37 10 18 28 5 20
20 Darren Van Impe D 79 5 23 28 −19 73
11 P. J. Axelsson LW 81 10 16 26 1 24
23 Steve Heinze RW 75 12 13 25 −8 36
19 Rob DiMaio‡ RW 50 5 16 21 −1 42
28 Andre Savage C 43 7 13 20 −8 10
18 Kyle McLaren D 71 8 11 19 −4 67
22 Mikko Eloranta LW 50 6 12 18 −10 36
43 Joe Murphy†‡ RW 26 7 7 14 −7 41
32 Don Sweeney D 81 1 13 14 −14 48
10 Cameron Mann RW 32 8 4 12 −6 13
17 Shawn Bates C 44 5 7 12 −17 14
25 Hal Gill D 81 3 9 12 0 51
21 Eric Nickulas RW 20 5 6 11 −1 12
57 Antti Laaksonen LW 27 6 3 9 3 2
12 Brian Rolston† LW 16 5 4 9 −4 6
37 Mattias Timander D 60 0 8 8 −11 22
26 Mike Knuble† RW 14 3 3 6 −2 8
53 Brandon Smith D 22 2 4 6 −4 10
29 Marty McSorley† D 27 2 3 5 2 62
16 Ken Belanger LW 37 2 2 4 −4 44
48 Joe Hulbig LW 24 2 2 4 −8 8
51 Jay Henderson LW 16 1 3 4 1 9
27 Landon Wilson RW 40 1 3 4 −6 18
55 Jonathan Girard D 23 1 2 3 −1 2
39 Joel Prpic C 14 0 3 3 −6 0
61 Marquis Mathieu C 6 0 2 2 −2 4
42 Peter Ferraro LW 5 0 1 1 −1 0
47 John Grahame G 24 0 1 1 8
46 Sean Pronger C 11 0 1 1 −4 13
49 Johnathan Aitken D 3 0 0 0 −3 0
44 Nick Boynton D 5 0 0 0 −5 0
34 Byron Dafoe G 41 0 0 0 0
45 Aaron Downey RW 1 0 0 0 0 0
35 Robbie Tallas G 27 0 0 0 6
54 Jeff Zehr LW 4 0 0 0 −1 2

Goaltending

No. Player Regular season
GP W L T SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI
34 Byron Dafoe 41 13 16 10 1030 114 2.96 .889 3 2307
47 John Grahame 24 7 10 5 609 55 2.46 .910 2 1344
35 Robbie Tallas 27 4 13 4 628 72 3.17 .885 0 1363

Awards and records

Awards

Type Award/honor Recipient Ref
League
(in-season) 		NHL All-Star Game selection Ray Bourque [6]
Team Elizabeth C. Dufresne Trophy Joe Thornton [7]
John P. Bucyk Award Steve Heinze [7]
Seventh Player Award Joe Thornton [7]
Three Stars Awards Joe Thornton (1st) [8]
Kyle McLaren (2nd)
Sergei Samsonov (3rd)

Milestones

Milestone Player Date Ref
First game Mikko Eloranta October 2, 1999 [9]
John Grahame October 4, 1999
Jeff Zehr November 20, 1999
Aaron Downey March 30, 2000
Nick Boynton April 1, 2000
Johnathan Aitken April 5, 2000

Transactions

Trades

Date Details
June 25, 1999 (1999-06-25) To Atlanta Thrashers
Randy Robitaille 		To Boston Bruins
Peter Ferraro
October 20, 1999 (1999-10-20) To Toronto Maple Leafs
Right to match arbitration award of Dmitri Khristich 		To Boston Bruins
2000 2nd-round pick (#59 overall)
December 28, 1999 (1999-12-28) To Edmonton Oilers
Kay Whitmore 		To Boston Bruins
Mike Matteucci
March 6, 2000 (2000-03-06) To Colorado Avalanche
Ray Bourque
Dave Andreychuk 		To Boston Bruins
Brian Rolston
Martin Grenier
Samuel Pahlsson
2000 1st-round pick (#27 overall)
March 10, 2000 (2000-03-10) To New York Rangers
Rob DiMaio 		To Boston Bruins
Mike Knuble

Draft picks

Boston's draft picks at the 1999 NHL Entry Draft held at the FleetCenter in Boston, Massachusetts.[10]

Round # Player Position Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
1 21 Nick Boynton D  Canada Ottawa 67's (OHL)
2 56 Matt Zultek LW  Canada Ottawa 67's (OHL)
3 89 Kyle Wanvig RW  Canada Kootenay Ice (WHL)
4 118 Jaakko Harikkala D  Finland Lukko (Finland)
5 147 Seamus Kotyk G  Canada Ottawa 67's (OHL)
6 179 Don Choukalos G  Canada Regina Pats (WHL)
7 207 Greg Barber RW  Canada Victoria Salsa (BCJHL)
8 236 John Cronin D  United States Boston University (Hockey East)
91 247 Mikko Eloranta LW  Finland TPS (Finland)
9 264 Georgijs Pujacs D  Latvia Dynamo-81 Riga (Latvia)
Notes
  1. The Bruins acquired this pick as the result of a trade on June 27, 1998 that sent a ninth-round pick in 1998 to the New York Islanders in exchange for this pick.

References

  • "Boston Bruins 1999-00 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  • "1999-00 Boston Bruins Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  1. ^ "McSorley must miss a year". The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Associated Press. November 8, 2000. Archived from the original on May 25, 2007. Retrieved March 11, 2007.
  2. ^ "1999-00 NHL Summary".
  3. ^ "1999-2000 NHL Hockey Standings". NHL.com. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  4. ^ "1999–2000 Standings by Conference". National Hockey League. Retrieved July 16, 2012.
  5. ^ "1999-00 Boston Bruins Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  6. ^ "2000 NHL All-Star Game Rosters". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  7. ^ a b c Boston Bruins 2014–15 Guide & Record Book, p.239
  8. ^ Boston Bruins 2014–15 Guide & Record Book, p. 239–40
  9. ^ "1999-00 NHL Debuts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved October 10, 2024.
  10. ^ "1999 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved June 10, 2023.